Export Preparedness Index 2021 | UPSC
HEADLINES:
NITI Aayog, in partnership with the Institute of Competitiveness, released the Export Preparedness Index (EPI) 2021 today.
WHY IN NEWS:
- Most of the Coastal States are the best performers.
- Gujarat ranked No. 1 for the second time in a row.
ISSUE:
EXPORT PREPAREDNESS INDEX 2021
- India has shown remarkable resistance to the obstacles created by the pandemic in global trade and India has achieved new heights in terms of export in the financial year 2021-22.
- The report is also an attempt to capture the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and recovery from it in terms of exports.
- The index can be used by states and union territories (UTs) to benchmark their performance against their peers and analyse potential challenges to develop better policy mechanisms to foster export-led growth at the subnational level.
AIM
- The idea behind the index is to create a benchmark to rank these states and UTs to help them individually promote a conducive export environment in the region.
- The index is an essential tool for policymakers and exporters to identify the drivers and obstacles, and examine the same to strategize a viable export map for the state.
KEY OBSERVATIONS
- Indian export is an inalienable component of India’s economic growth as exports have been contributing roughly 20 per cent on average to the GDP of India for the past decade.
- States with higher exports also experience a high Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP). US$ 259.25 billion is the estimated GSDP of Gujarat in Fiscal Year 2022.
- The pandemic created challenges for countries to attract investment within their domestic territory to generate employment; and, have more direct control of supply chains in the backdrop of simultaneous cessation of demand and supply across the globe.
- The government of India has set the merchandise export target of $400 billion for the year 2021-22.
- The country-level analysis is essential to further develop a comprehensive level of understanding of export preparedness in India.
- The overall strength and weakness regarding export preparedness can help formulate efficient strategies and policies to improve export growth in the long run.
SOURCES : NITI AYOG
FRAMEWORK
The 4 pillars and the rationale behind their selection is given below:
- Policy: A comprehensive trade policy provides a strategic direction for exports and imports.
- Business Ecosystem: An efficient business ecosystem can help attract investments and create an enabling infrastructure for businesses to grow.
- Export Ecosystem: This pillar aims to assess the business environment, which is specific to exports.
- Export Performance: This is the only output-based pillar and examines the reach of export footprints of states and union territories.
SOURCES : NITI AYOG
CHALLENGES
EPI 2021 brings out three major challenges to India’s export promotion.
- Intra- and inter-regional differences in export infrastructure.
- Weak trade support and growth orientation across states.
- Lack of R&D infrastructure to promote complex and unique exports.
IASbhai WINDUP:
- India is one of the fastest growing economies of the world with exports playing an important role in the economic growth of the country.
- It truly reflects the internal and external factors such as investor-friendly policies and a balance between levels of protection and incentives that encourage the private sector’s contribution in the region.
- The Business Ecosystem pillar evaluates states performance across four components: Business Environment, Infrastructure, Transport Connectivity and Access to Finance.
SOURCES: PIB | Export Preparedness Index 2021 | UPSC
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